Organizations’ Lack of Data Is a Major Challenge to Decarbonization

Siemens Smart Infrastructure has published a new report based on a survey of 650 senior executives. It explores how digitalization can be harnessed to accelerate decarbonization and transform the world’s infrastructure, particularly in energy, buildings, and industrial operations.

The findings highlight how smart infrastructure enables decarbonization, resource efficiency, and collaboration to achieve sustainability goals. However, whilst there has been significant progress in recent years, there is still an immense untapped potential, especially when it comes to data-driven operations.

The main insights include the extent to which digitalization enables more sustainable infrastructure, the importance of the right data to inform decision-making on the path to net zero, and which technologies leaders expect to have the greatest positive impact. Digital platforms are also seen to be an advantage for businesses, with respondents rating the top five benefits of their adoption as scalability; time and cost efficiency; faster implementation; reliability; and interoperability.

Digital technologies were found to play a critical role in reducing carbon footprints, optimizing resource use, and integrating renewable sources. 55% of respondents said that digital technologies have a significant or massive potential to advance the decarbonization of their operations. However, with 45% stating they see little or no such potential, many may not fully appreciate the links between digitalization and decarbonization.

Smarter, connected infrastructure is key to energy management. Even though 54% of those surveyed say their organizations are mature or advanced in the data-driven management of their operations, the research also finds that one of the major challenges to decarbonization efforts is data availability. A considerable proportion of respondents say they have little or none of the data they need in areas that are key to improving decarbonization and resource efficiency: 44% lack emissions data, 46% lack plant and machinery performance data, and 30% lack energy consumption data.

Respondents also face hurdles in leveraging data even when it is available due to limitations in their organization’s abilities to effectively integrate, manage, and analyze data coming from a variety of sources. There is a recognized need across organizations to increase the volume, improve the quality, and enhance the availability of their data assets if they wish to make informed decisions and achieve better efficiency and sustainability outcomes.

Based on the results of the survey, it is clear that AI is the technology expected to have the most positive impact on decarbonization and resource efficiency: 33% of respondents believe AI to have the biggest impact in the next three years. However, for now, other solutions contribute significantly to emission reductions, including IoT, digital twins, smart grids, and edge technologies.